milSuite 4.0

The Army's Program Executive Office for Command, Control and Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T) Military Technical (MilTech) Solutions Office has released the latest version of milSuite, a Department of Defense (DOD)-wide suite of secure collaboration and professional networking tools located behind the firewall.

Designed to mirror existing familiar social media platforms such as Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, milSuite fosters workforce collaboration and secure information-sharing across the DOD's numerous commands and locations. MilSuite includes: milWiki, a living military encyclopedia; milBook, a professional networking tool; milWire, a place to share and comment on news and events; and milTube, a video-sharing platform. The tools are integrated through a common user profile and linked by a Google search appliance.

What has the Army done?

MilSuite, which is accessible with a Common Access Card (CAC), recently rolled out several upgrades. Key changes to the 4.0 version include: a new design that connects all the tools through increased navigation capabilities; a new micro-blogging product, milWire (formerly milBlog), which allows readers to follow users and subscribe to feeds based on topics; a milTube interface that enables users to upload multiple file types as well as mark videos "private"; and new navigation icons on milWiki.

Among the many groups that use milSuite are the Army's Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) organizations, which use milWiki to share information about weapons systems. Soldiers are able to access detailed information about more than 700 C4ISR systems, including points of contact, system capabilities, fielding schedules and deployment history.

What continued efforts does the Army have planned for the future?

PEO C3T is working with Army and DOD leadership to begin offering milSuite as an official enterprise product through the Defense Information Systems Agency. This will enable Soldiers, Army civilians and support contractors from across all military branches to connect safely in one place. One of milSuite's goals is for Soldiers to never say, "I don't know." MilSuite provides the necessary information to support a successful mission.

Why is this important to the Army?

As the Army looks for ways to reduce its budget, milSuite provides a central repository for the DOD community to share information and best practices, which eliminates duplicative efforts. MilSuite also eliminates the high cost of setting up and maintaining an internal organizational website or collaborative forum, including licensing fees and man hours.

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